


War-Crossed

by DivergentLunarShadowhunter



Category: Warcross (Marie Lu)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Epilogue/Continuation, F/M, Flash Fic, Gen, Major Spoilers, Mention of Sasuke, Not Beta Read, Not romantic really, Post-Warcross, Takes place sometime after the book, Warcross Spoilers, i guess you could call it that, sorry - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-28
Updated: 2017-09-28
Packaged: 2019-01-06 11:33:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,312
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12210450
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DivergentLunarShadowhunter/pseuds/DivergentLunarShadowhunter
Summary: After weeks of ignoring Hideo's messages, Emika feels the need to contact him and tell him something he needs to know in order to prevent his tech from taking over.But does Hideo already know?





	War-Crossed

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is a Warcross fanfic (only the second posted so far) with just my shortened version of an idea of what could happen during the second book in the duology. Obviously I do not consider my version to be a better version than whatever Marie Lu ends up writing or a version that has to happen, this is just something I felt like writing after I finished the book.
> 
> Hope you like it! I tried my best to be canon-compliant and it was interesting trying to stay in Lu's style of writing as I made it (I barely even realized Warcross was present tense until I went to write this!)

War-Crossed: An Epilogue

 

I'd been pacing the room for an hour, thoughts battling in my head. Now, I finally glance at the clock on the wall.

 

**12:51PM**

 

 _It's too late_ , I think to myself. _He won't even be awake_. I know that's a lie as soon as I think it- we'd had plenty of late-night texts and calls, both planned and unplanned.

 

Plus, I add, it would be a good time to catch the owner of Henka Games just out of bed, hair and clothes rumpled and a drowsy look on his face.

 

_Shut up. This is business._

 

I sigh, listening even though I know everyone else in the building is asleep. Nobody would know if I did it. Even if it was against everything I'd told them to stand for these last few weeks.

 

I'd been angry, so angry. Angry at him for lying to me and betraying me right after he'd gained my trust. But worse, I was mad at _myself_ , for letting myself fall for somebody I barely knew, who I should've stayed far, far away from.

 

Because now, as angry as I was, I couldn't pretend that I hated him. I _couldn't_ hate him.

 

These past few weeks I had been consumed with the effort of trying to _understand_ him before I decided that I hated him. The only thing I think I realized was something I'd been repeating in my head ever since he told me about the tech.

 

 _Everything I do is for him_.

 

Of course it was. He wanted to stop people like whoever had taken his brother from doing anything else like that ever again. And for him, it didn't seem like a bad plan. Hell, if I was in his position I'd probably think it was a good idea too.

 

I am- I _was-_ a bounty hunter. I saw every sort of crime firsthand while I was walking the streets of the real and Dark worlds. It would be impossible for me to say _I_ was innocent.

 

I take another breath, realizing I had stopped and was staring at the blank wall of my room. I shake my head. _I can't do it._

 

_But why not?_

 

Because if I did, I'd be reconnecting myself to both the Link and its owner.

 

If I did, I'd have to see his face again.

 

If I did, I'd be surrendering to his constant wave of blocked messages to me, none of which I'd read.

 

My finger taps my thigh and I watch the call request send itself to Hideo Tanaka.

  


It seems like forever until he answers. Maybe it's nerves, from either one of us; maybe it's the fact that I'm no longer signed in under my own name to prevent him finding me.

 

I have no doubt that he'll know it's me anyway. He probably already knows.

 

When he answers, I don't see what I expect. He's in his bedroom, as I expected, but not in bed. He's still dressed in a light gray suit, albeit a more casual one than usual. It looks like he's been up for days- dark circles hang under his eyes and his hair lies virtually untouched as a tangled mass on the top of his head.

 

I don't see all of this at first. The first thing I see is his eyes, darkened by lack of sleep and some emotion I can't pinpoint. Stress? Sadness? Anger?

 

Before I can say anything, I see a request blink into my vision. It's a request for a link.

 

_No. **Our** link. _

 

My mouth opens and closed, eyes flickering everywhere but where the semitransparent figure stands in front of me.

 

My finger hovers above my leg and my eyes nearly linger on one word for too long.

 

**Accept?**

 

_I can't._

 

“I'm sorry,” I whisper as my eyes move to the other side and decline his request. His face shows no outward emotion as he nods- _but what was he expecting? He knows I won't do it._

 

“I understand,” he replies evenly. If he's disappointed he's good at hiding it. But then again, I should know by now how good he is at hiding things from me.

 

“I have a question for you,” I say bluntly. “This is strictly professional and something I won't say again.”

 

He frowns, but nods in agreement. I take a deep breath.

 

If I tell him this, it could change everything. If he doesn't believe me, it would make everything so much worse. This is my _only_ real leverage point against Hideo.

 

_How do I say it?_

 

_Do you know your brother is alive?_

 

_Are you aware your brother is fighting against you?_

 

_Zero is your brother?_

 

I open my mouth. Close it. Look away.

 

“Sasuke.” I push the word past my lips, not waiting to see the reacting emotions cross Hideo’s face. “He's alive. He's here.”

 

He stares at me for a long moment, and for a few seconds I think he’s just going to end the call and leave me standing alone in my room.

 

He doesn’t.

 

Instead, he sends the Link request again.

 

“Hideo-”

 

“ _I need to know_.” He cuts me off, forcefully, heavy emotion behind each word. My finger twitches, itching to feel his emotions in my own head again. The space between us feels filled with static, crackling with tension as we both stare at the request in our visions.

 

 **Accept?**      **Deny?**

 

_You want the truth? Fine..._

 

**> >>Link Accepted**

 

Immediately I feel his thoughts, surging and conflicted as they wash against mine.

 

“Is it true?” He whispers, an unmistakable threat in his voice this time. _If he thinks I’m lying…_

 

I can’t let him feel my doubts. I have to believe in the truth I speak.

 

“Yes,” I breathe, pushing my honesty towards him in an effort to convince him. We stare at each other in silence, him struggling to believe me and me struggling to _make_ him believe me.

 

“How would you know?” He replies finally. I should be disappointed, but really I’m not surprised. He’d probably been scouring the Neurolink for _years_ trying to find a profile that matched his brother.

 

I hesitate for a split second, wondering if I really need to tell him who Sasuke is. Zero himself had made me swear not to say anything, but I know this could be the only way to end Hideo’s war against crime.

 

“I met him,” I say, forcing myself to look straight into his eyes. “On a few occasions.” _I’m working with him now_...but I can’t tell him that.

 

Hideo looks taken aback. “How? He couldn’t be. If he was here in Tokyo- I would know.”

 

So I was right. He _had_ been looking for his brother despite thinking he was dead.

 

“He doesn’t go by Sasuke on the Link,” I clarify even though it should be obvious.

 

“Why not?” He looks genuinely confused. “Why would he sneak around? Why wouldn’t he want to find me again?”

 

“I don’t know,” I reply. And I truly don’t. I’ve barely even seen Sasuke since I found out his Link persona. I take another breath. I have to tell him, and soon.

 

I think he can sense my anxiety, because his frown deepens as he searches through my emotions. “What are you not telling me?”

 

“Hideo…” I warn, but he shakes his head.

 

“No. I don’t care. You need to tell me. Who is he?”

 

_I don't have a choice. He deserves to know._

 

“Sasuke...he’s Zero.” _He’s the one fighting against you. Who tried to assassinate you._

 

His mouth opens slightly in shock, body tensing as he realizes what I’ve just told him. I see and feel as he cycles through the surprise and guilt and sadness and anger.

 

I open my mouth to say-

 

**> >>Link Declined**

 

**Call Ended**

 

I blink and the message disappears, leaving me alone in the darkness.


End file.
